Current, technology used in electric power plants to produce electricity usually utilizes a fuel source, such as coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear, or solar energy to produce electricity. In a combined cycle power plant, Hydrocarbons are used to create heat. The heat is used to boil water to create steam, the steam under high pressure is used to spin a turbine, which in turn spins a shaft that is connected to a rotor on which an electromagnet (or permanent magnet) is located. The rotor is surrounded by stationary coils (stators). In some cases, wind power or falling water may be used to spin the turbine. In a simple cycle power plant, as hot combustion gas expands through the turbine, it spins the rotating blades. The rotating blades spin a generator to produce electricity.
The electromagnet is usually powered by a DC voltage to generate its magnetic field. The rotation of the rotor and therefore that of the electromagnet via the shaft causes the magnetic field lines of the electromagnet to cross the stationary coils (stators). This results in an alternating current being induced in the wire of the coils (stators) subject to Faraday's law. The faster the electromagnet is rotated (and hence with it the magnetic field lines), the greater the induced current in the stators. FIG. 1 shows a stationary coil in proximity to a magnet that is rotated by a rotating shaft. The magnetic field lines are presented in FIG. 1 in dashed lines. As the electromagnet rotates, the magnetic field lines rotate with it and this causes the lines to cross the stationary coil. This in effect generates an electromotive force (emf) or a potential across the coil. In FIG. 1, this is represented by Vemf as a function of time.
Faraday's law may also be applied in an alternative arrangement, in which a wire loop is rotated between two stationary magnets and a crank is used to cause this rotation. This produces a continuous varying voltage, which in turn produces an alternating current subject to Faraday's law. The faster the crank turns, the more current is generated.
In the system setup described above, the components that causes the shaft rotation are involved and have high maintenance costs. Additionally, the operability and efficiency of the system is linked to the proper operation of many parts of this system, including the boiler, turbine, shaft and any of their couplings. Further, due to the mechanical movement of the shaft that leads to the rotational movement of the rotor and that of the magnet and/or the coils (depending on the setup), a substantial amount of energy is lost in the system due to heat and friction. In fact, it is estimated that the efficiency of power plant generators that utilize the traditional setup described above does not exceed 60%. Moreover, the fuel sources that are used to generate the mechanical energy needed for the rotation of the shaft negatively affects the environment. As such, a new energy generation system is desired to increase the efficiency of power generation and that also overcomes these deficiencies.